IDF Medic and Author Tuvia Book Spotlights Israel’s Heroes in Gaza

When Hamas terrorists launched their massacre on October 7, 2023, many Israelis sprang into action. For Dr. Tuvia Book, a 55-year-old former combat medic and well-known educator, it meant one thing: returning to uniform, 15 years after his last military service.

“My first thought was what can I do?” Book recalled. “It’s not enough to talk the talk. You have to walk the walk.” So, the father, author, and tour guide from Modi’in dusted off his old army uniform miraculously still a fit and headed south to join the fight.

After talking his way onto a base, Book joined PALMAR Asaf, a special combat medical extraction team that worked with the IDF’s elite air-rescue unit. Their mission: break the ‘golden hour’ rule the long-held belief that no soldier could be evacuated from the Gaza battlefield to an operating room in under an hour. Book and his team shattered that myth, saving lives with speed, innovation, and unmatched coordination.

One of those lives was that of Idan Amedi, a famous Israeli singer and star of the hit series Fauda. Gravely wounded during an explosion in Khan Yunis that killed six soldiers, Amedi was initially believed dead. But Book’s team found a faint pulse, stabilized him, and airlifted him out unaware at the time of his identity. A year later, Amedi stood on stage in Jerusalem, pointed to Book in the audience, and declared. “Thanks to you, I can stand on this stage. We love you!”

Book’s story, though remarkable, is just one among many. His upcoming book, Heroes of PALMAR, pays tribute to the diverse and unified members of his unit: religious and secular, Jewish and non-Jewish, native-born and immigrants. “All our differences melt away when we put on that uniform,” he said.

Born in the U.K. and raised between Britain and South Africa, Book came to Israel as a teen and never looked back. He served as a lone soldier in the Givati Brigade, later building a career as a tour guide, educator, and author of acclaimed works on Zionism and Jewish identity. His passion for Israel has taken him across the globe as a Defense Ministry representative, a Jewish Agency emissary, and a powerful voice for Israel on the world stage.

Now back to guiding tours, he urges supporters to visit Israel: “The best way to support us is to come. Meet the people, see the country. Our unit’s equipment was donated by Jews in the Diaspora. We are one family.”

Book has also become a vocal advocate for better Israeli public diplomacy, calling on the government to utilize articulate, native English-speaking representatives rather than out-of-touch officials. “Israel is failing in the way it presents its narrative,” he warned.

Despite internal divisions resurfacing like the ultra-Orthodox draft protests Book sees hope in the unity of the battlefield. “If we could only replicate that unity in civilian life, we’d be in great shape.”

His message to the next generation? “The haters will always hate. The lovers already love. The real challenge is the 80% in the middle the TikTok generation who just don’t know. We need to reach them. Bring them here. Show them the truth of Israel a country that, despite all its pain, is still a light to the nations.”

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